KNK is back with a brand new single, titled as Sun, Moon, Star. The group made their debut last year with Knock and made comebacks with Back Again and U. Their latest single is said to pay homage to HIGHLIGHT (formerly known as Beast). The writer of KNK’s latest song, Kim Tae Joo, has previously worked with HIGHLIGHT and the choreography is also said to be inspired by Ribbon.
True to the claims, the song has distinct similarities to HIGHLIGHT’s tracks such as 12:30 and Ribbon. These two songs have grown to be one of my favourite tracks in KPOP and it seems like this one is fastly rising to join that list. I won’t say it is amazing or on par with the other songs, mainly because there is one thing that didn’t feel right (more on that shortly). KNK does manage to put a twist on the sound to make it different at the same time. The string and classical based instrumental suits the member’s vocals very well, considering how the group has so far made more powerful and intense songs. The song has no rap section, which is something that I agree with. There is no room for a rap sequence given the nostalgic instrumental and great vocals (i.e. a rap sequence would have made everything feel overwhelming). All of that being said though, this song doesn’t captivate me. There is dull feel to the song, which I can help but notice every time I return to the song for another listen. I say this because it is the one and only criticism I have regarding the song. I am quite sure that if the song somehow shook off that dull sound, the song would have been much better.
Returning to that dull point I was making, the haziness of the video doesn’t really help. I know that they are trying to put out a different video entirely, but I felt it was too hazy at times and the lighting was a little too bright for an emotional song. That’s me being narrow-minded. The darker choreography scenes seem to fit the track more. The video shows the guys trying to adapt to a breakup with their lovers. Everything else returns to normal (such as that chair moving back in place) but the guys are having a hard time doing so. The video also consisted on choreography shots and closeups of them singing, which all look good (minus the lighting).
The choreography is fitting for the song, so I don’t really have much else to say. On stage, they seem to convey their emotions both through the dance and their vocals, which is pretty cool. The link between HIGHLIGHT’s choreography and KNK’s dance is extremely subtle and I had to watch extremely carefully to catch it. Not too sure if that is a good thing yet, but it has me coming back to performances to see what else could be a connection between the two routines.
Song – 7/10
Music Video – 5/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 6.5/10